Limiting Beliefs

Carmen, who is the main character in my book faces a life of pressure and pain. Her life, like many other teen aged girls, involves her stressing out about fitting in and what other people think of her. Unfortunately for Carmen she is really overweight, but her goal is to find a group of friends who will except her for who she really is. Her mother is always pressuring Carmen to go on diets that are healthier but Carmen demands that since she is almost 17, it is time for to her make decisions on her own. In the book, Carmen's greatest limiting belief is her appearance and it is holding her back on many things. When she moves to a knew school she has to lie and pretend to be someone she isn't because she feels that none will like her. Throughout the book, Carmen's feelings and opinions change and her habits of fitting in with her surroundings alternate and peer pressure starts to kick in. Things Carmen use to love like reading and chocolate slowly fade out of her life, but now bullying kids and shopping play a new role in her life, two things that she would never do at her old school. Now when Carmen's mother seems to nag at her for being overweight, she can now block out all the negative comments and just stay positive.

If I had the opportunity to talk to Carmen I would tell her to just be herself and not to change who she is for others. She will be happier if she surrounds herself with individuals who are accepting of her for who she is rather than those who are judgmental.  "Let the world know you as you are, not as you think you should be, because sooner or sooner or later, if you are posing, you will forget the pose, and then who are you? This quote states that we can all try and put on a fake act and try to be something we are not, but that act will only take us so far. Sooner or later we will get caught up in the act and become confused as to what our real identity is.